Chapter One
Tails' tails spun round and round as he soared through Knothole, searching for his Freedom Fighter friends. Today just might be the day.
Sally and Bunnie climbed on Dulcy the Dragon as Sonic tapped his foot impatiently. "Can we get going already?" he asked. Sally rolled her eyes.
Antoine climbed aboard on Dulcy with the girls. Rotor walked over by Sally, handing her a backpack.
"OK, when we get there, we'll use these metal-eating balloons on Robotnik's SwatBots, got it?" Sally nodded. Sonic crossed his arms and hoisted Rotor up on his back.
"Ready?" he asked. Suddenly, Tails burst through the trees. Panting, he landed next to Sonic.
"Hey Sonic, can I go too? I know how the 'Bots work, and…" Sally and Bunnie exchanged sad glances. Rotor and Antoine shuffled their feet. Sonic looked sympathetically down at his friend.
"Sorry, little bro. Nothin' against you but-…"
"I'm just too young…" Tails sighed, finishing Sonic's sentence. A tear formed in the fox's eye as he watched all his friends venture out on a dangerous mission. Without him.
Kicking a rock, Tails walked sadly back to Knothole. He sauntered over to the Ring Pool, where he usually spent his time when everyone was away on a mission. Suddenly, an idea popped in his head.
Grinning, Tails dashed over to a rather large rock and lifted it up. Inside was a large hollow Sonic had helped him dig when he was really little. Tails would resign from the Freedom Fighters and make his own team. Under this rock would be their headquarters, and they would be right next to the purest lake in the land. It was perfect.
Dropping the rock, Tails dashed off into the woods to find some members.
It was nearing dusk. Tails yawned and sat down on a tree limb to rest. Sonic and the others should be back by now, he thought.
"Tails!" Sonic called. Sally looked around worriedly.
"I'm worried Sonic," she said. "It's going to get dark soon, and I don't want Tails out there by himself." Antoine smiled and waved his dagger around.
"Yes, because Tails is a, how you say, cat-scared, unlike ze great Antoine!" Bunnie sighed and shrugged as Antoine fell flat on his face because he lost his balance while waving his weapon.
"No worries, Sal," Sonic said, starting to spin his feet. "I'll find Tails, and then we can all get some sleep. Gotta juice!"
Tails pricked his ears as he heard Sonic zooming towards the Ring Pool. Tails rolled his eyes as the darkness of the night began to settle in.
He wasn't going to let Sonic bring him back to Knothole so he could be lectured and then treated like a baby. Thinking fast, the fox lifted up the rock and slid inside the large hollow. Sonic would never look there.
"Tails!" Sonic's muffled voice punctured the dirt. "C'mon, buddy, we're back, and we've got big news!" Tails blinked. News?
As Sonic zoomed past the Ring Pool, Tails heard a noise. It almost sounded like a sob. Hm.
Traveling further back into the hollow, Tails stopped abruptly as he bumped into something. He let out a cry as whatever he bumped into fell over.
"Ow!" came a voice. It was a female who, by the sound of it, was Tails' age. Reaching into his pocket, Tails pulled out a flashlight and shined it on the person.
"I'm sorry," he apologized. "I couldn't see." The girl looked up, her eyes red from sobbing. She was a silvery-brown fox with black stripes on her head. She wore a blue sleeve-less shirt and a skirt that was a darker blue-more of a maroon. One of her ears had two small earrings punctured in the side.
The brown eyes blinked. "Do…do you own this hollow?" she asked. Tails smiled.
"I guess you could say that. But you're welcome to stay here. Why were you crying?" The fox's eyes welled up with tears again.
"M-my name is Krystal. A long time ago, my father was out in the forest with his friend, Mr. Raccoon. He never came back. And this morning, my mother and I were picking apples for a pie, when one of Robotnik's robots captured her. She told me to run and hide, so I did." Tails put his arm around Krystal.
"Don't worry," he said. "We'll get her back." The brown fox blinked away the tears and tried to compose herself.
"So what's your name?" she asked. Tails smiled.
"My name is Miles Prower, but you can call me Tails. See my two tails?" The ill-named fox turned around and showed his new friend his tails. "I can use them to fly." Krystal smiled.
"Cool," she commented. "So, do you just live here by yourself?" Tails sat down and told Krystal the whole story-about Sonic and the Freedom Fighters, and how he had run away.
"That's awful!" she gasped. "Y'know what? We should make our own team! A team that fights against Robotnik, and a team where only very little age limits apply." Tails thought for a moment and then snapped his fingers.
"We could be the Liberators!" he announced. "Thing is, it's only you and me. We have to go find some other members."
Krystal nodded and yawned. "Sure," she replied. "But let's do it in the morning, shall we?" So the two foxes went to sleep, eager for the next day's adventure.